Marion County RECORD

In the homily given Sunday at St. John Nepomucene Catholic Church, Holy Family Parish in Pilsen, the Rev. Monsignor Frank A. Pugliese, Vicar General of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, likened Father Emil Kapaun’s service as a military chaplain to two widows who in Biblical accounts gave their all. The first account was of the woman who was asked to make a biscuit for the prophet Elijah when she had just a bit of flour and a few teaspoons of oil left for herself and her son before they would starve to death. Elijah told her that if she would prepare it for him, the flour and oil would never run out. And it was so. The second incident was of the widow who put her last two mites into the collection plate at the temple.

A fourth-place finish at the state 4-H livestock judging contest in August was something to be proud of for several Marion County 4-H club members. However, with only the top three teams slated for national competition they thought that was the end of this year’s judging season. A recent development changed that, and Nick Meyer, Lauren Geis, Bryce Roberts, and Karl Riffel found themselves frying and flipping pancakes Saturday morning to raise money to help pay their expenses to judge in the national 4-H livestock-judging contest in January in Fort Worth, Texas.

Jeannie and Brad Wildin have hosted 16 Brazilian exchange students as they attended Marion High School, and many of those students went on to attend Hesston College. Their Marion residence would become home base for international students, as many as 22 college-aged adults sprawled on any surface they could sleep on.

Voters in Marion County cast 187 provisional ballots in the Nov. 6 general election, but 78 of those votes were disqualified Monday at the election canvass. There were five reasons votes were disqualified: 34 voters moved to Marion County from elsewhere and hadn’t re-registered; 29 voters simply were not registered; two voters weren’t registered before the deadline for the general election; and one voter went to the wrong polling place.

Harla R. Cheek of Hamilton died Nov. 6 at KU Medical Center in Kansas City. She was born Sept. 9, 1956 to Harlan A. and Evelyn O. (Logan) Zager in Council Grove.

Donna Merwin Cook, 78, of Parker, Colo., formerly of Marion, died Oct. 28. She was preceded in death by her parents, George and Juanita Merwin of Emporia, one sister, and one son. She is survived by her husband, Bob G. Cook, two sons, two daughters, and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

MARION — Ellen E. Darrow, 93, passed away Nov. 12, 2012, at her residence. She was born near Marion, Dec. 15, 1918, the daughter of John and Rena Conyers Hett. On Jan. 1, 1942, she was united in marriage to Lloyd L. Darrow. She was co-owner and bookkeeper of Aulne Grain.

MARION — John D. Hett was born April 4, 1930 to John and Rena (Conyers) Hett of rural Marion, Kan. He passed away Nov. 10, 2012, in Marion, after a prolonged illness. John lived in rural Marion, near the town of Aulne, his entire life. As the youngest of nine children in a happy and loving family, there were many large and interesting gatherings involving relatives and friends. Stories about these events and the happenings spawned by lives filled with the joy of strong family relationships and a certain creative humor abound in the lives of those who had the privilege to experience and participate in this family.

Cleda Louise Meyer, 71, of Alma died Nov. 7 at her home. She was born Feb. 3, 1941, in Fayette County, Ill., to Oscar A. and Fern (Harrison) Copple. She graduated from Council Grove High School in 1959. She married John F. Meyer on Aug. 26, 1962, at Church of Christ Christian in Council Grove.

Marion City Council approved a conditional use permit Monday for a communications tower near Marion County Jail. There were agreed conditions offered by Marion Planning Commission. The tower is to be located 32 feet to the north of the southeast corner of the building, it is to be drill tested, the permit is to be reviewed in five years, and the tower is to be removed within 90 days if it is no longer in use.

Clark Davis, a representative of Tampa PRIDE, asked the city council Nov. 5 for a commitment to the program for another year. After a brief discussion, Mayor Tim Svoboda signed a resolution giving the city’s support to the program. David Rziha was sworn in to complete the unexpired term of Don Zaideman, who resigned.

Congratulations to the Marion High School sophomore class. They saw something they wanted to change — that they didn’t get open lunch like the juniors and seniors — and they did something about it. Instead of simply saying, “We want open lunch, too,” they developed a specific proposal, then took that proposal through the right channels to get a hearing with USD 408 Board of Education. Their proposal came with several conditions — sophomore open lunch is only Tuesday through Thursday and they cannot drive on open lunch — and concessions — eligibility requirements as incentive to do well in class. Ultimately, the sophomores offered so much in return for open lunch privileges, that Board of Education President Chris Sprowls said he thought the class was being tougher on itself than the board would have been, and MHS Principal Tod Gordon said earlier drafts of the proposal were even more restrictive.

ANOTHER DAY IN THE COUNTRY:

BALANCING ACT:

With the arrival of colder weather, there is an increase of fuel-burning appliances being used in the home. These appliances include furnaces, ovens, space heaters, generators, indoor grills, and fireplaces, and they can cause dangerous levels of carbon monoxide to build up in the home. According to a study from 2004 to 2006, children younger than 5 years old have the highest estimated rate of CO-related visits to the emergency room each year among all age group in the United. Nationally more than 25 children die from CO poisoning every year. In Kansas, over 500 people have been hospitalized and four people have died from CO poisoning over the past 10 years.

A member of U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran’s staff will have office hours beginning at 4 p.m. Monday in the Marion County Commission meeting room at the county courthouse, 200 S. Third St., Marion. Mike Zamrzla, deputy state director for Moran, will meet with residents who are having problems with Social Security, Medicare, Veterans Affairs, or other concerns related to the federal government.

The Poem in Your Pocket group will meet at 7 p.m. Thursday at Marion City Library. Participants are invited to read or recite their favorite Thanksgiving poems.

An idea for a birthday party for Mike Beneke of Lincolnville has morphed into a fundraising event in memory of the late Konley Harding of Burdick. The 21-year-old man was killed Oct. 27 in a hit-and-run accident east of Manhattan. A dinner of smoked beef, mountain oysters, and fried fish will be served by donation from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday at Lincolnville Community Center.

Florence Chess Club will meet from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday at 726 Marion St., Florence. The Kansas Chess Association president will join the club for games and lessons.

An early morning collision resulted in critical injuries for a Wichita man and shut down K-15 highway Nov. 7. A Goessel High School student, Kevin Moon, was on his way to an honor math contest when he pulled his 1988 Chevy pickup onto the highway from the east after stopping at the stop sign. He proceeded into the path of an oncoming truck driven by Robert Earnst, 56, of Wichita. Earnst swerved to miss the youth and lost control of his 2005 F150 pickup. The vehicle flipped several times before coming to rest on its side in the middle of the highway just south of Alexanderwohl Mennonite Church. Alberto Morales-Ceniceros, 61, also of Wichita, was a passenger in Earnst’s vehicle.

The Board of Directors of Harvey-Marion County Community Developmental Disability Organization will meet 4 p.m. Monday at 500 N. Main St., Suite 204, Newton. There will be opportunity for public forum.

First Baptist Church of Canton will be hosting an evening with Greg Strange, musical comedian, at 6 p.m. Dec. 2. The program will be held at the church located at 4th and McPherson streets in Canton. Strange performs over 200 concerts per year, visiting churches, inner-city schools, rescue missions, prisons, and Indian Reservations.

Retired Illinois State University professor Emerson Wiens will address the positives and negatives of technology during Tabor College’s Lifelong Learning series at 9:45 a.m. Friday in the Wohlgemuth Music Education Center. Wiens attended Tabor College for a semester before transferring to Bethel College and earning a degree in industrial arts education. He taught for 23 years at Bethel and earned a doctorate in vocational and technical education at the University of Illinois. He taught technology in society courses for 12 years at Illinois State University.

Jack Griffith’s recent days have started to mirror the melancholy cowboy songs he sings any chance he gets. Unlike the drovers in many of those tunes, Griffith is not dying, but he is gradually hanging up his spurs. Griffith and his wife Leona used to host Roundup Suppers at their ranch north of Walton. He would take people out in a coach, pulled by two Belgian horses he raised, to a place in his pasture. During the trek, he would tell cowboy stories. In the pasture, Griffith had fashioned a wooden stage and picnic tables. As his guests ate their meal of barbecue brisket, he would strum his guitar and belt out songs like “Cowboy Jack” and “Streets of Laredo.”

The 27th annual Philip Deines reunion was held Oct. 14 at the Lincolnville Community Center. The hosts were Iva Schlatter, Gerald Riffel and Karon Neff, children of Emma and Harry Riffel, deceased.

Not too many people plan to make a career out of cleaning up others’ junk and then giving away the profits, but then not too many people are as good-hearted as Willis Goerzen of rural Goessel. Goerzen, a licensed heating and air-conditioning mechanic, and part-time van-driver for Bethesda Home, collects and takes apart air conditioners, dehumidifiers, or anything not in working order that might have aluminum, copper, or other metals of value inside.

PEO Chapter DB held its regular business meeting at noon Nov. 5 in the home of Judy Reno. Assisting Judy as co-hostesses were Norma Nickelson, Arlene Bowers, and Bettie Batt. Twenty-two members attended the meeting. New bylaws were approved; approval of new standing rules was tabled until the next meeting.

Seventeen members attended the Neo-Century Club meeting Nov. 5 held at Hilltop Manor. Donna Fruechting introduced the speaker for the evening, Marion Canine Police Officer Mike Stone and his eastern black shepherd dog and master tracker, Raven. Stone shared his background, which led to his present position and then introduced Raven who showed her expertise in tracking. Stone said Raven was about to be euthanized but was rescued. He added that Raven is the most intelligent dog he has ever trained.

CORRESPONDENTS:

MEMORIES:

WEDDING:

USD 408 Board of Education agreed Monday to allow the Marion High School sophomore class to have open lunch three days a week, subject to conditions. Class officers Jacob Baldwin, Braden Fahey, Samantha Davies, and Julia Hall presented their proposal, which began as a project in English class. They proposed having open lunch for sophomores Tuesdays through Thursdays.

At its monthly meeting Monday, the Centre USD Board of Education heard from teachers Jennifer Montgomery, Kara Luce, and Jackie Ingram about the standards-based grading program they are using in their classrooms. Standards-based grading focuses on a student’s understanding of the material rather than just rote learning and points. Instead of letter grades on quizzes and assignments, students are scored on their understanding. Scores include EX, exemplary; ES, exceed standards; MS, meet standard; AS, approaching standard; and NE, no evidence.

On Nov. 7, the seventh annual MC2: McPherson College Math Competition invited 265 high school students from 18 area schools to put their math skills to the test. Goessel, Hillsboro, Marion, and Peabody-Burns high schools all participated in the competition.

Centre High School play director Jennifer Montgomery wanted a comedy that was innocent. She also thought a period piece would be fun. She found the right mixture with “Act Your Age,” a play written in the 1940s and set during the decade. Montgomery had seniors Ellie Miller and Anna Weber in mind when selecting the production. Miller and Weber have acted in Centre’s plays since they were eighth graders. They play two 14-year-old girls, Angy and Jerry who lie about their age to go dancing with two sailors staying at their residence on shore leave.

“I’ll always be an American, and I’ll always cry American tears.” The Centre Junior-Senior High School Choir sang these words Friday during the Veterans Day concert at Centre High School.

When Graeme Glaser of rural Peabody gets up each morning, he goes out to take care of his livestock. It is something he has done all his life as a career farmer and agriculturist - take care of things. Since 1978 Glaser and his wife, Diane, have farmed in Marion County, raising crops and livestock. Since Oct. 1 this year, he has been hauling water to his 25 cows every other day, stretching resources to combat drought conditions in central Kansas.

At 11 a.m. every Thursday and Friday, Dorothy Conyers loads up her car at Marion Senior Center and begins her circuit around Marion, delivering Meals on Wheels to shut-ins. “I love it,” she said Thursday. “I love the people.”

Five Marion High School football players were named to the Heart of America League first team. Junior Morgan Wheeler was the only offensive selection as an offensive lineman.

Several county athletes were named to the Wheat State League football team. Senior Justin Deines and junior Kyle Methvin were named to the first team from Centre High School. Seniors Trey Schmidt, Nicolas Buller, and Shane Goerzen were named from Goessel High School. Seniors Hunter Pickens, Tommy Morris, and Lucas Larsen were named from Peabody-Burns High School.